Kemps Game

Kemps game is considered to be the matching card game for 2-6 teams with 2 players in each. You may also find this game by the names: Kent, Party, Signals, Quems, Twa, Cash, Campers, Jabers, Peanut Butter and Squares.

The game is played with a regular 52-card deck.

The origin of Kemps game is unknown and it's believed that the game is learned from fellow to fellow.

Kemps Game Basics

The principle aim of the Kemps card game is to gather a hand with 4 cards of the same rank. Plus you are to signal this fact to a partner who must yell "Kemps!" before the rival team understands that the four of a kind is gathered.

The team wins the round and receives a letter (K-E-M-P-S letters actually - one by one) and thus the first team which collects the whole word - wins the game. It's not out of place to mention that the spell word variations are possible.

Before the actual gameplay starts the teammates discuss in which way they are going to signal the four of a kind accumulation. It may be gesturing, yelling, tapping or etc. The variations are innumerable. Also you may easily choose the variant which will confuse the opponents and provoke funny situations.

As it already been mentioned, the object of the game is to gather four of a kind, give a signal to your teammate who must yell the cherished word by-turn.
In addition the Kemps activity possesses the next card game rules to know:

Each player is dealt with 4 cards;

Other 4 cards are placed face-up in the center of the playing table (community cards);

Any player may change his/her card for that is on the table at any time;

If there is no more needed cards among the community four, then it is okay for a player to state this fact and change the central cards with new ones;

The cards which were cleared and placed to a discard pile - resigned the game for sure.

Kemps Game Scoring

The Kemps gameplay ends in 3 ways usually:

The player gathers four of a kind, his/her partner receives the signal correctly + the opponents fail to notice these facts - then the "Kemps!" is heard and the announce team wins the game;

If the player doesn't gather four cards of the same rank but his/her partner somehow understands the opposite and announces false "Kemps!" - then this team loses;

The player gathers four of a kind but his/her partner is failed to notice the signal. And quite the contrary - the opponent notices the fact that four cards are gathered by rival team - then the attentive player yell "cut" (usually, but variations are possible) and thus score a victory for a team.

Being a very popular game - the Kemps possesses a lot of intra-game variations with different rules and peculiarities. We have mentioned the basic one in this article.